Miami's Anderson cleared of wrongdoing

Thursday

Sep 19, 2013 at 12:01 AMSep 19, 2013 at 2:55 AM

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Miami Heat forward Chris Andersen was the victim of a wide-ranging Internet hoax that resulted in a raid of his Denver-area home last year, his lawyer said Wednesday, and prosecutors confirmed Andersen was cleared of wrongdoing in the "extremely complex" case.

The Associated Press

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Miami Heat forward Chris Andersen was the victim of a wide-ranging Internet hoax that resulted in a raid of his Denver-area home last year, his lawyer said Wednesday, and prosecutors confirmed Andersen was cleared of wrongdoing in the "extremely complex" case.

Lisa Pinto, spokeswoman for the 18th Judicial District Attorney's Office, told The Associated Press that the office is reviewing a 4,000-page report before charging decisions are made, but added that "based on the information that we have been able to obtain and analyze, we are not pursuing charges against Chris Andersen."

Andersen's lawyer and agent, Mark Bryant, said his client was duped by a woman in Canada who sought a relationship and gifts and who threatened a female acquaintance of Andersen's in California while impersonating the tattoo-covered fan favorite known as "Birdman."

Bryant said neither Andersen nor his acquaintance realized they weren't communicating with each other online or via cellphone texts but rather were communicating with the woman in Canada, who impersonated one to the other.

The Canadian woman initially contacted Andersen through his now-shuttered Facebook profile, Bryant said.

"Chris was a victim," said Bryant, adding it was his understanding that the investigation uncovered at least a dozen people across several other states who were duped by the same woman who's been charged in Canada.